The Day’s All-Area Girls’ Track & Field Athlete of the Year: Old Lyme’s Chase Gilbert
Jan Merrill-Morin, the Old Lyme High School girls’ track and field coach, calls Chase Gilbert “a total student of the sport.”
Gilbert, The Day’s 2024 All-Area Girls’ Track & Field Athlete of the Year, is on such a high level of absorption that prior to coaching her for the first time this season, Merrill-Morin, the former Olympic middle distance runner, sat down and read a few books to polish her coaching acumen for Old Lyme’s resident whiz kid.
“I communicate a ton with her,” Gilbert said of Merrill-Morin. “She really has helped me focus on elements of training, developing speed ... more 400s, 800s, I ran a 59 (seconds) in the 400, which I was really happy about.
“Before, on the last lap of the mile, my fastest was 74 (seconds); I closed in a 68 at the State Open and New Englands. That allowed me to compete at a higher level.”
Merrill-Morin called refers to this as “a delightful season.” It was her first coaching in Old Lyme and the Wildcats won the Class S state championship on May 29 at Willow Brook Park in New Britain, getting titles from Gilbert in the 1,600 meters (5 minutes, 1.58 seconds) and the 3,200 (11:17.75).
Gilbert, a sophomore, and Merrill-Morin were both overjoyed with the team title.
“Coming into that day, I didn’t have a slight thing in my mind we were going to win,” Gilbert said. “It was a ‘what-if’ sort of thing. We’re very blessed to have an amazing coach come to us. We were able to put it together, not just runners but Serena (Mazzi) in long jump, Kate (Walsh) in the 800, Zoe (Eastman-Grossel) in the hurdles.
“Our high placement ... it really added up. It’s like quality over quantity. ... After that it was just screams of happiness.”
Merrill-Morin, who formerly coached at Old Saybrook and got to know Gilbert peripherally from Shoreline Conference events, also enjoyed becoming further acquainted with Gilbert, the two-time Class S cross country state champion and The Day’s two-time All-Area Girls’ Cross Country Runner of the Year.
Gilbert, who owned the fastest 5,000-meter time in the state last season (17:06.5) suffered a hip injury just prior to the State Open championship, costing her the opportunity to compete in the biggest race of the year and sidelining her for the bulk of indoor track season.
Gilbert wrestled with her emotions during that time but became more balanced in her training. She cross-trains now, riding her bike to the beach and swimming laps.
“She understands a lot for a sophomore,” Merrill-Morin said. “She has everything in her mind. She’s done a really good job.”
Gilbert isn’t afraid to glean information from others, all a part of the leaning process.
She found herself star-struck at first by Merrill-Morin, who made it to the finals of the 1,500 meters at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal and formerly held the American record in the event in 4:02.61 — “sometimes I go up to her and say, ‘a 4:02 1,500 is absolutely wild’ and we just laugh about it,” Gilbert said.
Gilbert calls State Open and New England 1,600-meter champion Katherine Bohlke of Newington, who edged Gilbert in both races, “so, so, so elite.”
She looks up to Sadie Engelhardt of Ventura, California, named the Gatorade National Girls’ Track & Field Athlete of the Year after breaking the U.S. high school record in the mile in 4:28.46. Gilbert brags she had her photo taken with Engelhardt once.
And, of course, there’s Gilbert’s sister, Ava, who is a flute student at Interlochen Center for the Arts, an arts boarding high school in Michigan. Chase and Ava are opposites, with Chase calling music “a failed hobby in elementary school.”
“But it’s the best feeling when she comes back,” Gilbert said of her sister. “I’m an only child otherwise.”
Following Gilbert’s pair of Class S state championships — she also ran on the Wildcats’ 4x400 relay team which finished second, contributing further to the overall team title — she ran up against Bohlke at both the State Open and New England meets in the 1,600.
Bohlke won the State Open in a meet record 4:47.43, with Gilbert second in 4:50.34 and Bohlke took the New England crown in 4:46.43 to Gilbert’s 4:50.02, with both girls setting personal bests. Gilbert led in both races, slogging through the New England meet in the pouring rain, but was unable to shake Bohlke in both cases.
Gilbert finished her season at the New Balance Nationals in Philadelphia, coming in 24th in the mile.
She then took a few weeks off from running, working at her parents’ cosmetics business in Deep River. She’s hoping to get her driver’s license soon, although there’s hardly been time.
“I do set big expectations on myself,” said Gilbert, asked what’s next. “In cross country, I’m going to be an upperclassman. That’s crazy to think about. I want to place as high as I can at the State Open and if I can make the Foot Locker (regional) team, that would be cool. Setting (personal bests) is the big thing for track.
“I know a lot more about my body. I’m aware any time I feel a little kink. ‘Let’s take care of this quickly.’ I know the game better. I’m smarter tactically. ... I’ll be connecting with Jan over the summer. I talk to her a ton. I’m sure she’s curating something right now.”
v.fulkerson@theday.com
The Day’s 2024 All-Area Girls’ Track and Field Team
Player of the Year - Chase Gilbert (Old Lyme)
100 meters - Emily McKelvey (Lyman Memorial)
200 - Tiana Bamber (Montville)
400 - Lily Davis (Waterford)
800 - Kate Littler (Ledyard)
1,600 - Hazel DeLucia (Lyman Memorial)
3,200 - Kaitlyn Kumpf (Wheeler)
100 hurdles, 300 hurdles - Zoe Eastman-Grossel (Old Lyme)
4x100 relay - Fitch (Jayla Robinson, Isabella Braucci, Hannah Warner, Tahjanae Knight)
4x400 relay - Old Lyme (Zoe Eastman-Grossel, Serena Mazzi, Kathleen Walsh, Chase Gilbert)
4x800 relay - Ledyard (Ella Stephenson, Kate Littler, Fionna Woody, Avery Widlicka)
High jump - Kamryn Plikus (Montville)
Pole vault - Lily Gilbert (NFA)
Long jump - Darielys Arnold (New London)
Triple jump - Uliana Pokutnia (St. Bernard)
Shot put - Alyssa Blanchette (Bacon Academy)
Discus - Hannah Graham (NFA)
Javelin - Ashleen Walsh (Bacon Academy)
Utility - Sarah Davidson (Waterford), Avery Maiese (Waterford), Hannah Thomas (Fitch)
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